CM: Marcus Stergiopolous – Australia
I know Sterg wasn’t particularly a central midfielder, but I will play him there anyway, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
He stayed for eight games and one goal, but what a goal it was. The Australian midfielder of Greek descent joined City at the start of the 2000/01 season and instantly became a recognisable figure with his surfer boy haircut and his exotic-sounding name.
We’d already been beaten comprehensively in the first leg of the League Cup by Sheffield Utd by 6-1. Sterg was a 75th-minute sub, but two games later, he broke into the first team as we registered a 3-0 home win with Southend. Bring on the second leg against Sheff Utd, and a damage limitation exercise.
In the 58th minute of that game, Sterg scored a stunning free-kick to silence Blades fans travelling to Lincoln. We held out for a credible 1-0 win, and although we were out 6-2 on aggregate, there were positives to take. The performance of our Australian midfielder was one.
However, he struggled to hold down a first-team place, and his last Imps appearance came just a month later as a late sub in a 2-1 win at home against York. He sat on the bench for the final match of his Imps career, a day that saw us lose 4-3 to Barnett after being 3-0 up inside half an hour. I assume he saw enough that day to convince him he wanted to get back to Oz.
He forged a good playing career in his home country, retiring in 2010 and taking over as manager of Croydon City in 2013. He’s now a sales and marketing manager for a sportswear firm in Australia.